Generally, a table saw for cutting a workpiece has a circular saw table formed with an elongated generally rectangular opening through which a circular saw blade projects. The workpiece is supported on the saw table and moved in a longitudinal direction over the table during cutting.
Often, the table saw includes front and rear guide rails extending in a direction transverse to the longitudinal cutting direction. These guide rails mount a rip fence for movement in the transverse direction. The rip fence is fixedly positionable to the guide rails to a dimension of the workpiece to be cut.
Workpieces of sufficient size and weight, such as a four feet by eight feet plywood sheet, are difficult to move on the saw table. Moving such large workpieces can cause fatigue to an operator and can also result in inaccuracy in the cutting due to starting and stopping of the workpiece during cutting. This is particularly true when no provision is made to support the workpiece as it is exiting from the discharge end of the table saw.
Extension tables have therefore been proposed for use with a saw table to provide support for large workpieces. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,068,551 to Kreitz discloses an extension table for power saws in which the distal end of the table is supported by folding legs and the proximal end of the table is pivotally connected to one edge of the normal worktable. U.S. Pat. No. 4,106,381, also to Kreitz, discloses a folding extension table which is designed to permit miter gauge rods to slide forward without interfernce.